MINISTERIAL PRESS BRIEFING OF THE BUREAU OF RURAL DEVELOPMENT AND COOPERATIVES, MAKURDI PRESENTED BY THE HON. SPECIAL ADVISER DR. ADZER ABYAPROTOCOLPreamble
I am delighted to be here today to present the score card of the Bureau of Rural Development and Cooperatives. The Bureau of Rural Development and Cooperatives was changed from the Ministry by the Governor of Benue State, Samuel Ortom in May, 2015 in order to meet the exigencies of the time. Since then, Benue state has embarked on the aggressive transformation of the rural areas covering the three senatorial zones.
Structure of the Bureau
The Bureau is headed by the Hon. Special Adviser, Dr. Adzer Abya as the political head while the Permanent Secretary, David Ishegh is the Administrative Head and accounting officer. We have five (5) viable departments and they are headed by Directors as follows:
Mrs. Ngufan Amiseh Director Admin and Finance
Mr. Michael Akor Ag. Director, Community Development
Engr. Dr. Peter Damkor Ag. Director of Rural Roads and Electricity
Mrs. Regina Okwori Ag. Director of Cooperatives
Mrs. Jane Ihaji Director Planning, Research and Statistics
The Department of Community Development, Cooperative Services, Rural Roads and Electricity constitute the crux of this Bureau. The Administrative/Finance officers as usual are polled from the office of Head of Civil Service and Ministry of Finance (Accountant General’s office) respectively. Our staff strength is made up of 152 main staff and 21 pooled staff and 23 casual workers.
Goals
Since 80% of the Benue population live in the rural areas where basic infrastructure of modern living remains largely underdeveloped, the challenge of the Bureau is to improved conditions of living for increased wellbeing of the rural populace.
The main goals of the Bureau is based on the State Policy, “Our Collective Vision for Greater Benue” are as follows: to initiate, implement, manage and sustain development programmes amongst rural communities especially in the key areas of infrastructures, economic empowerment and human capacity building. Our main focus therefore is on:

Construction of rural feeder roads in all Local Government Areas of the state are now highways.

Electrification of rural towns and villages in Local Government Areas of the State

Development of rural areas through community development projects to better their lives.

Empowering the rural populace of the state through establishment of cooperative societies to enable them engage in economic activities in order to raise their standard of living.

In addition, the Bureau has the responsibility of collaboration and monitoring of the activities of other organs involved in the implementation of rural activities as well as mobilizing additional resources for rural development in the state.
The main function of this Bureau includes that of construction of rural roads, bridges and culverts, electrifications of rural communities, organizing and mobilizing individuals and organizations to form cooperative societies, unions and community development associations. This is in addition to the processing of administrative and financial matters concerning the Bureau, for example staff salary, promotion, training, discipline, and other welfare matters.
Specifically, the functions of the Bureau are outlined below, department by department viz:
Administration and Finance Department
The department is responsible for personal staff matters including payment of salary, promotion, training, discipline, welfare, supplies and management of accounts. The department is headed by the Director of Finance and Administration. Other sections under this department are personnel, finance and supplies. The Bureau has promoted all due and qualified staff, trained some level of personnel, paid claims and other allowances to date and undertook some welfare activities for staff etc.
Cooperative Department
This department has the responsibility of mobilizing and organizing the populace especially rural dwellers, to form and operate viable self-sustaining cooperative societies so as to enhance resource mobilization for economic development through self-help efforts. It also has the registry of all cooperative organizations in the state, as contained in Decree No. 90 of 1993. Since 29th May, 2015, a total number of two thousand, one hundred and thirty eight (2,138) Cooperative Societies have been duly registered with total revenue of eleven million, one hundred and eighty five thousand, five hundred naira (N11,185,500.00) only.
The Bureau is currently working on the revitalization of two apex cooperative organizations, and these are the Benue Cooperative Federation Ltd, and the Benue Agricultural Cooperative Unions. It is hoped that when these are revived, the consumer cooperative shops will also come alive. The Federal Government has also introduced an intervention programme aimed at mobilizing the client small holder cooperative farmers to access and utilize development initiative being offered to improve rural livelihood and advance National Food Security. This will also create more sustainable jobs for the youths. Towards this end, the Federal Government has built a model Integrated Cooperative Services Centre at Makurdi Industrial Layout along Naka Road to serve the scheme.
The Bureau through the Department of Cooperatives joined the FADAMA III Development Project jointly funded by the World Bank, Federal Government and the Benue State Government.
The Bureau is also collaborating with the Federal Government on the programme on Rural Finance Institutions (RUFIN) for rural areas introduced by IFAD. Benue is one of the twelve states of the federation participating in the programme. There are three local governments in Benue State that are participating, and they are Apa, Gwer-West, and Logo. A counterpart funding of N24 million naira has been paid in the programme by the Benue State Government since 2011. It is hoped that, the state government will pay the outstanding balance of N60 million naira which will be used for the proposed outreach programme as continuation of the programme.
Revenue generation under Cooperative Department form May 2015 till dateMay, 2015 – Dec. 2016

Month

Societies

Unions

Federation

Renewals

Audit/Insp

Amount

May

26

8

–

–

–

N210,000

June

29

N145,000

July

24

7

2

N135,000

August

36

N180,000

September

64

15

N342,000

October

67

1

N345,000

November

53

3

N269,500

December

62

N310,000

Total

361

9

25

2

N1,937,000

Jan, 2016 – Dec, 2016

Month

Societies

Unions

Federation

Renewals

Audit/Insp

Amount

January

81

2

2

N428,000

February

124

7

7

N630,500

March

143

5

5

N728,500

April

129

14

14

N666,000

May

258

26

26

N1,329,000

June

243

18

N1,242,000

July

188

N940,000

August

118

2

N590,000

September

110

N559,000

October

103

13

N555,000

November

113

N565,000

December

115

27

N815,500

Total

1,728

56

112

N9,048,500

Jan, 2017

Month

Societies

Unions

Federation

Renewals

Audit/Insp

Amount

January

39

3

N200,000

SUMMARY: May – Dec., 2015 – N1,937,000.00
Jan – Dec, 2016 – N9,048,500.00
Jan, 2017 – N200,000.00
GRAND TOTAL – N11,185,500.00Access to Credit:
The Department has registered over one thousand cooperative societies and have keyed into the ongoing Central Bank of Nigeria anchor borrowers programme.
This programme tremendously increased Cooperative Societies’ access to credit. During the December 2016 Benue Cooperative Retreat, the Executive Governor of Benue State revealed that N2 billion is already domiciled at the Bank of Agriculture, another N2 billion is domiciled at the Bank of Industries and the CBN for Cooperative Societies to access. Large number of Cooperative Societies completed the formalities of accessing these funds.
Department of Planning, Research and Statistics
This was created in the Bureau towards the end of 2016.
The Department of Planning, Research and Statistics is a vital component in the development of strategic linkages, there has being tremendous success recorded as well as challenges in integrating activities of all departments of the Bureau for homogenous planning, organizing, directing and evaluation for optimal productivity.
To fulfill the responsibilities of the mandate for the establishment of the department, the department developed the following specific, measurable, attainable, realistic and time-bound objectives which were also achieved. These achievements include:

A systematic synergy of strategic blend of diverse skills and talents into a formidable highly motivated team to actualize the specified goals within a limited time.

The successful identification of individual team members’ strength for role assignment and specification within limited developmental apparatus.

The successful and meticulous appraisal of the previous year’s budget (2015) with corresponding recommendations.

The successful planning and strategic preparation of the budget (2017) in a logical record time.

A successful and realistic documentation of project location, type and progress at various levels of implementation.

The successful initiation and development of departmental intellectual templates for evaluation of teams’ strength, weakness, opportunities and challenges for effective planning and project monitoring.

Community Development
The Department of Community Development is responsible for initiating and implementing sustainable development programmes, as well as guiding rural communities on their felt needs programme through collaboration with rural communities and other stakeholders. It is also to promote, the utilization of indigenous knowledge, and natural resources to enhance the domestication and ownership of development amongst rural communities. Towards this end, the Department planned to undertake a need assessment survey of 276 council wards in the state. This is done with a view to assisting the rural communities in accessing government assistance. Since creation of the Department to date, the department has integrated several community development associations and have been able to register over 150 Community Development Associations. Efforts are in by the Bureau also to train youths on various skills for purpose of poverty reduction and job creation. The Bureau plans to establish skills acquisition centres in the three senatorial zones and Makurdi, so that youths and women can be trained to be self employed after training.
One of the notable areas, the Bureau is going to focus on, is in the area of nucleated settlement pattern which will be designated and classified according to towns, villages, hamlets and communities to enable them attract social amenities like water, electricity, hospitals etc. as well as minimize land disputes. The Bureau is also planning to embark on rural education and public enlightenment drive to re-orient their value system to come together to develop themselves. The Bureau has set up machinery to ascertain how the community development department will be able to yield revenue through the registration of community based associations. This is with a view to regulate and control their proliferation and to allow viable ones to be recognized by government for possible assistance ad intervention.
Department of Rural Roads and Electricity
Since the creation of the Bureau, the Department of Rural Roads and Electricity has been involved in a number of activities in the following areas viz: feeder roads, bridges and culverts, rural electrification.
The detailed summary of rural electrification and the civil engineering projects executed by this administration since inception to date, and their various impacts and outcomes are given as follows:
List of ongoing civil engineering projects from May, 2015 to date

Construction of Mbaakon-Mede Ihugh feeder road with a spur from Mede to Warishu stream and Moji Achir Kima Village in Vandeikya LGA, awarded to CAD Development Ltd, Abuja 45% completed. Contract sum N259,703,888.00

Other inherited electrification projects include;
Extension of electricity from Okwudu to Ipole to Utikpi – Efeyi villages in Otukpo Local Government Area awarded to Ayegba E. Enterprises Nig. Ltd, Otukpo. Contract sum N42,728,189.35
Thus report cannot be complete if we fail to mention the achievement recorded in the area of procurement of five number brand new Hilux vehicles for supervisions/inspection purposes.
Challenges
The Bureau is faced with a number of challenges. Chief among these are:

Inadequate resources to carry out identified projects and programmes of government.

Shortage of qualified personnel.

Lack of office accommodation most especially in our area offices.

Shortage of functional vehicles.

As a way of getting out of these major challenges, the Bureau has embarked on sensitization and enlightenment exercise to get the rural communities to embark on self-help projects. The Bureau took pains to explain to people particularly the more privileged ones of community development oriented projects. The exercise has yielded tangible results in many communities across the State e.g an indigene of Kwande Local Government Area; Mr. Ephraim Apia successfully executed a bridge across River Paa, Ikyurav-Ya linking Cross River State and is about to be commissioned by His Excellency, Dr. Samuel Ortom, Governor of Benue State.
Equally too, a good number of well spirited individuals across the state have either donated transformers, or built bridges and culverts for their communities. Lately too, some local governments in the state have taken a cue from this gestures.
It is our earnest prayers and appeal that the spirit of giving back to our communities be sustained by all well-meaning and wealthy individuals. We equally call on Community Development Associations (CDAs) to partner with the State Government to bring development to their areas.
Another area of development challenge is human capital requirement. The issue of lack of requisite professionals like civil engineers, electrical engineers etc. in the Bureau has been tabled at the appropriate quarters and is receiving favourable attention. It is our hope that this problem will be a thing of the past in due course.
The third development challenge is lack of office accommodation in our area offices. The Bureau is liaising with the various Local Government Councils (LGCs) to provide suitable office accommodation to our officers.
Finally, shortage of official vehicles for field work has hampered the inspection, monitoring and evaluation of programmes.
Conclusion/Appreciation
Even though the mandate of the Bureau is large, it hopes to network with other line Ministries, like Health, Education, Agriculture, Women Affairs, the NGO and other stakeholders etc. in her implementation strategies. The NEEDS assessment of the various communities will be taken into consideration aimed at participatory and strategic development, all in an attempt to reduce/alleviate poverty level and unemployment of Benue citizenry.
At this juncture, I wish to express my profound gratitude to the Almighty God and equally to Governor Samuel Ortom for affording us the opportunity to serve the state in the capacity we have been appointed. I also wish to appreciate the hardworking Permanent Secretary, the management and staff of the Bureau for their commitment and dedication to duties, in ensuring that the vision of His Excellency is realized. My special thanks also go to the Ministry of Information and Orientation and the Nigerian Union of Journalists for organizing this accountability briefing. To other stakeholders who are here to listen to my score card due to their various interests in our activities, we say thank you.
Distinguished invited guests, members of the Press, ladies and gentlemen, thank you indeed for your apt attention and may God bless us all.

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